Baja California

The two-man crew of the second flight of the space shuttle observed a unique sea breeze as the Columbia passed over the coast of Baja California, Mexico. A local wind system was blowing south toward Isla de Magdalena, spreading a stratus cloud layer over the coast, yet there was evidence of a sea breeze west of Bahia Magdalena, not to the south of that embayment as expected. Many more such localized sea breeze regimes have been photographed since this flight in late 1981. Such area-restricted sea breezes were a surprise to meteorologists at the time but are now recognized as typical of many coasts, especially those lying in arid regions of the world.